“Behold, He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen.” Revelation 1:7
In dealing with His disciples, seeking to bring them to a true knowledge of God and His ways, the Lord Jesus was confronted with several problems. The first was the limit to which the disciples could receive the truth, the revelation of God. The Lord would tell them, “I have yet many things to say unto you, but you cannot bear them now.” (John 16:12) But there was also the problem of capacity, and one’s inability to grasp the heavenly, that which was beyond sight and sense. The day after the resurrection, when Jesus appeared to the disciples, even though the door of the room where they were meeting was closed, was one of those moments. Another was when He a second time appeared, with Thomas declaring, “My Lord and My God.” But when we get to the book of the Revelation, we are confronted in every way with the littleness, and limitations of man, to grasp something of WHO this glorified Christ is. And yet, the importance of seeing the Lord Jesus through the Scriptures at this time is crucial to faith, and the whole-hearted response to what He instructs the believer to do. This is brought out when John the Apostle, while being exiled on the isle of Patmos, writes: “Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.” (Rev. 1:3) Here the question must be asked: “What is so monumentally important about the revelation of Christ as seen in the Revelation, that the churches of Asia minor, indeed, all churches then and now, are advised to look and live?” Absolutely key to the growth of faith is a true vision of Christ, both when He came the first time to walk among us, “full of grace and truth,” and then that which we see in the Revelation. Both advents surpass the capacity of man to grasp and understand, and yet, by the Spirit of God the truth becomes life, and we see Jesus as He is in His glory, howbeit “through a glass darkly.” What does the Revelation convey to all churches and believers? What effect is it to have upon every disciple of Christ, and the body of Christ, the design and purpose of God in the world?
In the first chapter of the Revelation, John describes what is being revealed to Him of Christ, first by the declaration of what Christ says of Himself: “I am Alpha, and Omega, the beginning and the ending.” (v.8) These great concepts the Alpha and Omega, and the Beginning and the Ending, are meant not only to convey to us His power and glory, but also His infinite wisdom and goodness. This Christ declares that He is coming again, revealing that He is the Almighty God, Infinite, and all-powerful, holy and thus perfect in every aspect of His being, just and pure. He is the Savior of all men, specifically of those who believe, but also their Creator and sustainer in life. He is also that One to whom every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that He is Lord. But there are other reasons for this revelation of Christ in this manner, and at this time. In that revelation is the inherent call of God to every individual on the face of the earth to seek Him and find Him. Though addressing specifically the church in that day, the call is to every man, for He declares: “And the Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come.’ And let him that heareth say, ‘Come.’ ‘And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.'” (Rev. 22:17) The great objective in the Revelation of the glorified Christ is to exhort His church to live by faith, and saving all who will seek Him.
Dear Father, Anoint our eyes to see. In Jesus’ name, Amen.